


i'll get by with you on my side.

by heavenhearted



Category: NCT (Band), WAYV
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angel Qian Kun, College Student Reader, F/M, Fluff, I love Kun, Qian Kun is Whipped, Strangers to Lovers, that's about it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:14:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27044833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heavenhearted/pseuds/heavenhearted
Summary: kun gives up heaven for you.
Relationships: Qian Kun/Reader
Kudos: 11





	i'll get by with you on my side.

**Author's Note:**

> title from [heaven](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3VnGGFNuzc&ab_channel=DavidDeanBurkhart) by clairo.

kun has gotten used to living like this.

if you can call it living. ever since he was first created, he’s had one special job: to maintain peace, unity, and goodness on earth. and he was extremely good at it.

as an angel, he was able to visit earth in any form (other than his true one; humans obviously wouldn’t be able to comprehend what kun _actually_ looked like) and do anything he felt would make things right. he usually helped struggling humans, he’d always had a soft spot for them. he would sit at his desk and search the globe for people who felt helpless, assess their situation, and see what he could do. his model of earth was interactive, allowing him to observe humans and control time as he pleased, and as an angel, he had access to the complete history of a person’s life. oftentimes, with how sensitive humans are, all he needed to do was appear as a puppy, or a cat, or a friendly squirrel, and that would cheer them up enough to fix whatever their problem was. other times, he would go in his human form and just be a talkative stranger, give them some advice, show some kindness. kindness, kun discovered very quickly, was always, always effective. people need it to survive.

yes, kun loved what he did. he loved being a good force in the world. he loved returning home to watch the outcome of his actions unravel and make real, palpable change. 

and eventually, after two millennia of this, kun found you.

-

you’ve been having a really, really hard time lately.

to get the worst out of the way first, your dog died last week. you let her outside, and she sniffed around the grass in front of your apartment building before tentatively going out into the street, something she’d never done before, and you barely had the time to call out her name before a car came flying around the bend. that was more than enough to keep you in your apartment for a week, heart broken, consumed not only with grief, but guilt. you didn’t have her on a leash. it was partly your fault.

on top of this, your grades took a bit of a dip, understandably, but it was pretty detrimental in your italian class. you weren’t doing too great in the first place, and the decline quickly made it the worst grade you’ve had in all of your university years. you hold yourself to a very high standard with school, always have, and have a terrible habit to link your self worth with your grades. so this wasn’t too great either.

the cherry on top was finding out one of your “acquaintances”, a friend of a friend of a friend, had been talking shit about you. in a totally middle school way, too, which made it even worse, because she was just making stuff up. telling other girls you were two-faced and mooched off her for schoolwork (which couldn’t be further from the truth -- you work your ass off for your grades), telling guys you liked to fuck around and that you had a high body count and a tendency to get with your boyfriends’ friends. you really can’t imagine why, you’ve never done anything to this girl in your life. some people just need to put others down to lift themselves up, and sometimes, the only way to do that is to lie.

your dog gone, your grades falling, your reputation in tatters. you know it could be so, so much worse, but it still feels awfully shitty.

you’ve just been trying to keep as busy as possible, going to the library to churn out as much good work as you can to make up for the dip in your grades, walking around campus with headphones on, even being so cliche as to sit in cafes and just people watch out the window, tuning in and out of conversations around you. anything to distract you from how miserable you are. 

a few days of this pass, and it’s not hurting, that’s for sure, but you still don’t really feel much better. you can feel your puppy’s absence every time you walk into your apartment, feel that lurch in your stomach every time your mom asks how classes are going, feel people’s eyes on you when you’re just trying to study. you know it’s just because all of it is still so fresh, but it feels like it’s never going to end. and it’s driving you a little crazy.

the breaking point comes the next week.

you lose track of time doing astronomy assignments, and have to walk home after dark by yourself, something you always try to avoid doing. you don’t live far from campus, and it’s not a “dangerous” place by any means, but you’ve seen enough news to know that in today’s world, nowhere is safe. especially once the sun sets. 

for the first ten minutes, you’re fine. you stay alert, your phone in your jacket pocket and headphones in your bag. you keep your eyes focused on the sidewalk ahead of you, a look of bloody murder in your eyes, thumb resting on the trigger of your pepper spray. you don’t pass many other people, and you begin to feel better about it.

that’s when it happens. 

you’re grabbed by your ponytail and yanked between two buildings. you yelp in surprise, and try to extend your arm, but the perpetrator is already pulling the pepper spray from your hand, and he tosses it to the ground easily. he has you pressed against the brick, forearm digging into your throat. 

“gonna try to spray me, weren’t you?” he accuses, and you want to gag. how is this happening? how is this actually happening? you did everything you were supposed to do. you thought you racked up enough good karma this past week to at least be okay walking home. is this really it? has all of this just been the beginning of the end?

you’re deathly still in his grasp, hardly even breathing, you’re so fucking petrified. this guy could do anything to you right now. absolutely anything. you’re defenseless.

“you’ll pay for that, you little bitch,” he spits, pressing his elbow even harder into your throat. your air supply is totally cut off now. you know there’s not much time left. not much time to fight back, not much time to escape. not much time left to live when you’re being strangled. 

you stomp down on his foot as hard as you can, and he falters just a little, but it’s enough for you to break away and take off running down the sidewalk. you know he’s right behind you, even though you just fucked up his foot a little. you know you’re screwed now -- you saw his face, he knows you’d report him if you got away. he might actually kill you now. he probably will.

your adrenaline is making you faster than usual, but you’re still not very quick. there are tears streaming down your cheeks as you hear his footfalls get closer and closer, breath coming out all choppy both from sprinting and from being crushed before. you close your eyes, knowing he’s about to grab your hood and pull you back.

but all you hear is a thud, and that awful voice exclaiming, “fuck!”

you dare look behind you, and see him crumpled on the sidewalk. another man appeared out of seemingly nowhere, his back to you as he keeps a foot on your attacker’s stomach, pressing his weight into him.

he turns around to look at you, and asks quietly, “are you okay?”

he looks so concerned for you, eyebrows furrowed and plush lips shaped into a frown. you thank god and allah and shiva and every other all powerful being for sending him to you. for saving you. 

you don’t even know how to respond. clearly, you’re not okay. you’re still shaking like a leaf, tears pouring from your eyes, head spinning so fast you feel like it could fly off at any second. if he had asked “are you alive?”, that would’ve been an easier question. but all you can really do is tilt your head and sniffle.

he looks like his heart is breaking. “okay, okay,” he consoles, pulling his phone from his jeans, “just hold on for one minute, okay? you’re safe now, i promise. i’m gonna take care of this.”

you nod hastily.

he calls the police, obviously, and once he hangs up, he turns back to you, still keeping all of his weight on the man. your savior asks if he hurt you or touched you anywhere, and you just shake your head. he tells you again not to worry, and reassures you that you’re completely safe now. all you can do is whisper, “thank you.”

the police arrive within minutes, since you’re still technically on campus. a female officer takes you on a walk down the street, away from where they’re arresting your attacker and pushing him into the back of a cop car. she speaks to you very softly, asks if you’re okay, asks if he hurt you at all. you tell her no, other than cutting off your airflow, he didn’t really hurt you anywhere. once she’s convinced you’re okay, she asks you to recount what happened. you tell her what you can -- it happened so fast, it hardly feels like there’s anything to tell. she tells you she’s going to walk home with you, just to be safe, and you don’t even turn her down out of politeness like you usually would. 

she speaks into her radio, asking if the perpetrator has left the scene, and one of the other officers confirms. she walks slowly with you back to where you came from. you see the man who helped you talking with two other officers, hands moving around him as he speaks. he glances toward you and the female officer, and then looks again when he realizes it’s you. he holds up one finger to the officers and quickly walks over to the two of you. he lifts a hand up like he wants to touch you, but thinks better of it and lowers it again. “how are you doing?” he asks, folding his hands together.

you look at him without the lens of panic for the first time. and to be honest, you know the world has been spinning for the duration of your life and all of its existence before that, but looking at him now, you feel it for the first time.

he’s indescribably good looking, firstly. light brown hair falling into his eyes in waves, shiny eyes (you can’t quite tell the color from where you’re standing), pretty pink lips with a deep cupid’s bow you can’t help but want to taste, a cute button nose. his cheeks are rosy, presumably from keeping your attacker down and all the madness that ensued after. he’s dressed nicely, too, a white collar peeking out from a yellow and green striped sweater, blue jeans, checkered sneakers. even his voice draws you in, so soft, the sound caressing your ears like a sweet breath. you’ve never before met anyone with such an aura of calm and safety.

“i’m okay,” you finally remember to answer his question, “thanks to you. i really … i seriously owe you my life. really. i can’t thank you enough.”

for the first time since you met him, he smiles, and the sight of it almost knocks you over. he goes from being handsome to adorable in seconds. it’s hard not to fawn over such a beautiful smile. it really is.

“you don’t owe me your life,” he insists, “i’m just glad you were okay. i saw him chasing you, and i knew something was wrong.” he runs a hand through his hair. “i’m just sorry i couldn’t have helped sooner.”

you shake your head at him. this guy is unbelievable. “please, i … don’t even say that. just, thank you so much.” you pause, but your curiosity gets the best of you. “what, um, what’s your name?”

it’s at this point that the female officer leaves to join her colleagues, sensing you feel comfortable enough to at least be a few feet away. “i’m kun,” he says, extending a tentative hand out. “i’m sorry we had to meet like this, but i’m glad we did.”

you take his hand, and you’re immediately blown away by the warmth. “yes, me too. it’s nice to meet you, kun,” you say with one hundred percent sincerity, testing how it feels to say his name, “i’m _____.”

“_____,” he repeats back. a smile slowly works its way across his face. “can i walk you home, _____? to make sure you get there okay?”

you blush; you can’t help it. he says your name in a way that feels so … intimate. like it’s not yours anymore, but his. “thank you,” you tell him, “but you don’t have to. you’ve done more than enough, and one of the officers said she would go with me.”

he nods, but his lips fall into a small pout. the urge you get to pinch his cheeks is absolutely ridiculous. “okay, i’m glad. an officer is probably more of a threat to creeps than i am.” he bites his lip as he smiles, eyes falling to his feet before meeting yours again. “can i ask something else, then? can i give you my number, just so you can let me know when you’re home safe? i’d, um,” he pauses to scratch the back of his neck, his words becoming sheepish, “i’d feel better if i knew for sure you got there alright.”

it’s almost startling how much you already like kun. how much you don’t want to leave him at all. “of, of course!” you agree, fishing your phone out and unlocking it before handing it to him. he grins as he takes it from you, fingers brushing ever-so-slightly against yours. the contact makes your whole body thrum with electricity.

he returns your phone to you with one extra contact, _kun😇_ , before the female officer returns to you. “okay, miss _____, we’re all set for tonight. we’ll be contacting you in the coming days to further investigation, but it’s pretty clear what went on here tonight, so it won’t be anything crazy. we’re free to get you home, okay?”

you nod. “yes ma’am, just one moment.”

you look at kun, at his serene expression. “thank you, again. text me if you need anything, like, um, ever? because i owe you big time. seriously. i won’t feel better until i can repay you in some way.”

kun rolls his eyes playfully. “you can repay me by texting me when you’re home safe.”

“i can do that,” you relent, “but it doesn’t count.” you hesitate for a moment, but ultimately decide fuck it, and step closer to kun, wrapping your arms around his torso and pressing your cheek into him. “thank you. i mean it. thank you so much.”

you finally feel his arms come to rest around you, and you feel so small and safe in his arms that it almost makes you want to cry. “y-yeah,” he says, “no problem.”

ten minutes later, kun gets a text from a new number.

kun,  
thank you endlessly for helping me, i am home safe thanks to you. i mean it about a favor. please don’t hesitate to reach out. have a great night and hopefully i’ll be hearing from you soon about doing your trig homework for a semester / making you a full thanksgiving dinner / cleaning your bathroom after taco night.  
xo, _____ 

his heart seizes in his chest. who even writes texts like that, in letter form?

_____,  
i love your text format, and have decided to steal it. i will definitely reach out when i need to do laundry after going to the gym / write my dissertation / fix the leaky faucet in my bathroom. but seriously, don’t worry about a favor. just focus on getting some good sleep tonight, and we’ll see where we can go from there :)  
yours, kun 

and when kun finally returns home, he zooms all the way in on his little globe until he finds you, safe in bed, chuckling to yourself as you read his reply. his heart warms at the sight, at you looking finally happy. he’d felt the distress in your soul a little while ago now, the moment your dog passed. he’d been keeping an eye on you since, watching as things progressively got worse for you, but decided he had to step in when he saw you were in real, palpable danger. he hated that he had to go, but it was the only way you would survive. he just tried to enjoy his short time with you.

unfortunately, he enjoyed it a little too much. he couldn’t help it! he just liked you, you were exactly his kind of person. and you seemed to like him, too. though, to be fair, he did save your life, so he figured that probably clouded your judgement a little. but still!

and now, kun is hitting himself. because he finally did what he always has tried so hard to avoid; he went and got himself attached to a human. so, so stupid.

because there are three rules kun has to follow. one, never reveal your true form to humans. two, only use your powers for good. 

three, never visit the same human twice.

… 

he had a funny feeling he might break that one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [my tumblr](https://lilycafe.tumblr.com).


End file.
